Mon, Jan 10, 2011 at 7:08 AM

1. In their ongoing efforts to snatch the Oakland A’s, San Jose city officials announced that the city’s redevelopment agency will sell five pieces of land to raise cash for a new ballpark, the Mercury News reported. San Jose plans to use the $25 million in land-sale proceeds to buy two remaining parcels needed for the stadium. The city’s redevelopment agency also needs the cash because it has financial problems. However, city officials also acknowledged that Governor Jerry Brown’s plan to eliminate redevelopment agencies throughout the state would throw a wrench into their ballpark plans. Brown’s proposal would snuff out Oakland’s plans for a new A’s stadium, too.

2. Brown is expected to unveil his proposal today for eliminating redevelopment agencies as part of his budget plan. Ironically, the Sacramento Bee reports that the Sacramento loft that Brown and his wife Anne Gust Brown are renting was built with the help of redevelopment funds. Brown also relied on redevelopment money to carry out his 10K plan for downtown Oakland. Under his current budget proposal, paying for construction projects like his new loft and his 10K plan would be impossible because the money would be taken by the state.

3. Investigators in the Arizona mass shooting are still trying to determine what prompted assassin Jared Loughner to target Democratic Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Right-wing Republicans, led by Sarah Palin, have immediately gone on the defensive. Last year, Palin issued a map that put Giffords and other Democrats in crosshairs, saying “It’s Time to Take a Stand,” and urged conservatives to not “retreat” but to “reload.” Although Loughner’s exact motivation remains unclear, it appears that he was deranged and had anti-government leanings. Tucson-area Sheriff Clarence Dupnik said his state had become “a mecca for prejudice and bigotry.”

4. In case you missed it, the San Francisco 49ers won the Jim Harbaugh sweepstakes, signing the successful Stanford coach to a five-year contract worth $25 million. The move gave the 49ers instant credibility and Harbaugh warmed the hearts of fans when he said he would restore Bill Walsh’s West Coast offense.

5. And Twitter slang has developed into regional dialects, the Chron reports. In the Bay Area, Twitter users write “coo” for “cool,” but it’s “koo” in SoCal. And Northern Californians get “hella” tired, while New Yorkers are “dead-a” tired.